Empty Hardware
by YoungLove08
Summary: RPF. Naya comes back from the ALMA awards and finds that life might need more than just a little hardware. Just something off the top of my head.
1. Chapter 1

Just something that came to mind after seeing some stuff online about the ALMA awards. I wrote it quickly, so I'm sure there are mistakes but I'm getting really tired and have to be up in 3 hours.

One-Shot for now, could possibly continue…

Enjoy!

Warning: RPF. None of this is true!

* * *

Naya climbs the steps to her front door and puts her key in the lock. She turns it and swings the door open walking inside, the sound of her heels on the wooden floors echoing through the empty house. She closes the door behind her, drops her keys on the table to her right and switches on the lamp.

She sighs. She's exhausted. A trip to Tennessee, an early flight back and an award show all within two days is a lot, but nothing she can't handle with her abnormally busy work schedule.

She hopes her fatigue didn't show in the photos she's sure are circling the internet by now. She shrugs, figuring her fans probably wouldn't care either way.

Naya heads over to the stairs, ascending to the second floor to make way to her bedroom. Once inside, she turns on the bedside lamp. She slips out of the jacket to her pantsuit, laying it down on her bed.

_Pantsuit? I wonder what statement I was supposed to be making this time_, she thinks as she stretches her arms above her head, _Going to have to return it tomorrow anyway_.

Naya finishes discarding the rest of her clothes and moves over to her dresser to pull out a tank top and some pink striped pajama shorts. She slides them on before heading to her bathroom.

When she looks in the mirror, she shakes her head. _Don't know how you do it, Rivera._

She throws her hair up in a messy bun and removes the make up from her face. She finishes rinsing and dabs her face on a hand towel. She brushes her teeth and shuts the light off in the bathroom, heading back to her bedroom.

She hangs her suit up in the closet and grabs her clutch from the night. She pulls her phone out of it and moves it over to the bedside table, then drops the clutch on her desk chair, figuring it can wait until tomorrow.

She crawls into bed, settling herself under the covers. It's never felt this good to be lying down. She turns to her bedside table and picks up the picture frame she keeps there.

She lies on her back and holds it above her, running her fingers over the family photo. Her eyes focus in on herself; her smile, the light in her eyes, the utter happiness. She wonders if she still has that, she's not totally sure.

She misses them. She's so busy, and everyone's all over the place. She wants more time with them. Maybe she wants more time making a family of her own. She's just not sure.

LA has so many people, but in this empty house with no one beside her, she feels alone.

She places the photo back where it belongs and grabs her phone that was lying next to it. She clicks off the lamp and lies back down.

She stares at her phone, realizing she hasn't checked it in a while. She presses the center home button and sees a long list of green icons on the left indicating she had a lot of text messages she hadn't read yet.

She slides the arrow to unlock her phone and begins to go through each message.

_Mom  
My firstborn never disappoints! Love you, baby girl. So proud._

_Bee 3  
AYO girl! Look atchu gettin' all dem ALMA's! You a champ, BEEEE!_

_Di-Di  
Hey, beautiful girl! Congratulations on your wins tonight! You truly inspire all. =)_

_Mychal  
Big sis, represent! Sad you had to go, but so happy for you!_

_Lea  
LET'S HAVE AN AWARD PARTY! YOU, ME, and CHRIS! Shh don't tell the others ;)_

_Nickayla  
Seriously? Something to add to your collection? Whatever, I'm still taller than you._

Naya giggles at some of the goofy responses, but can't help but feel a little disappointed. Just as she begins to set her phone back down on her nightstand, it buzzes in her hand. Her heart skips a beat and she smiles as she pulls the phone back to her face to see who the new message was from. The smile falters a bit as she reads the text.

_Matt  
Congratulations on your awards tonight, babe! Would you like me to come over and celebrate? ;)_

Right, Matt, of course. She should be happy, although it's been a few hours since she's won and he's just now getting around to congratulating her. But maybe he was busy. She's just not feeling up to it right now, though. She's probably just tired. Yea, she's tired. She responds:

_Thanks! I'm really tired actually, I'm already in bed drifting off. Rain check?_

_Matt  
Of course, pretty girl. Anytime, anywhere. You know that. Sweet dreams._

She sighs and quickly types out a response.

_Night =)_

Naya taps at her phone repeatedly, the clicking of her nail against the screen almost a remedy for her restless mind. She scrolls through her phone and finds the contact she's looking for. She clicks on the name she was looking for and types out a message. She hesitates for a second, her thumb hovering over the send button, before finally sending it through:

_You awake?_

Naya continues tapping on the phone to ease her anxiety, when it buzzes shortly after.

_HeMo  
Yea, what's up? Everything okay?_

_Naya  
Oh no, everything's fine. I just… well, I won two ALMAs tonight._

_HeMo  
That's great! Congrats, Nay!_

Naya stares at the response, eyebrows furrowed, somewhat disappointed in the depth. Then her phone buzzes again.

_HeMo  
How was Tennessee?_

_Naya  
It was good, Mychal was great. _

_HeMo  
That's good._

_Naya  
Yea…_

_Naya  
What'd you do tonight?_

_HeMo  
T's baseball friends were in town. We caught up a bit, but I wanted to go home early. They're still out partying. You know boys…_

_Naya  
Yea, boys ha_

_HeMo  
How's Matt?_

_Naya  
Heather…_

_HeMo  
What?_

_Naya  
I know how you feel about him. Please don't right now, not tonight._

_HeMo  
Hey, maybe I was trying to look past my disapproval. If it makes you happy, then…_

_Naya  
Can I call you?_

_HeMo  
I don't know, I just got back Nay._

_Naya  
Please?_

Naya jumps a little when her phone begins to ring loudly.

"_Hello?"_

"_Hey."_

"_Hi"._

"_So what is it you need to so desperately say to me?"_

"_Heather… why-"_

"_Just say it"._

"…_I'm not happy."_

"…"

"_I'm not. I was with my family and I just - I was so - everything was so – I want that life back. I mean, the family part. I want to start a family."_

"_Well, maybe Matt can do that for you."_

"_I don't want Matt to do that for me."_

"_Then what do you want?"_

"…"

"_Naya, what is it you want?"_

"_Heather, I think you know what it is I want."_

"_No, I don't know. Because if I did know, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now, would we?"_

"…_I miss you so much. These past few weeks, when we've been shooting these scenes together, it's brought me back and—"_

"_No, no you don't get to do that. You have no right to say that to me."_

"_But Heather—"_

"_No, Naya. It's not okay. I, we… you could've had me," _she said tears evident in hervoice_. "You chose this. You took the limelight and you ran with it. So congratulations on your awards, really, but you can't expect me to be that person for you anymore. That's what Matt is for."_

"_But I don't want Matt!" _Naya exclaims, choked sobs causing her body to shake.

"_Then maybe you shouldn't have cut me off the minute he walked on set."_

"_It wasn't like that, Heath! You, I – I was so confused. I didn't understand what I was feeling and you were still figuring things out with T-"_

"_No, we were done at the moment. You know why? Because I chose you. And you chose HIM. And then, by some miracle Tay took me back. And I am never going to hurt him again just to be made a fool of like I was with you."_

"_Heather, please… I made a huge mistake, please." _Naya's sobs were becoming painful to listen to, heart-wrenching.

Heather sighs on the other end of the phone, sniffling a little.

"_Naya, I can't."_

"_But you-you are everything, don't you see? Don't you understand that?"_

"…_I do. Unfortunately, I do."_

"_So see? We could—we could be together. We could be something else, HeMo. We could run the world, you know?"_

"_I don't want to run the world, Nay. I just want to live my life. I want love. I want a family."_

"_We could do that!"_

"_No, I can do that… with Taylor."_

"_But you LOVE ME, I know it! Please, please Heather. Please, say it's true."_ Her voice is barely audible, it's so broken up.

"_Are you trying to re-enact that Brittana scene?_" Heather tries, in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"_Heather…"_ Naya's voice: so raw, so shattered.

"… _I'll always love you, Nay. You know that."_

"_So then be with me! I don't care about Matt or fame or anything. It was never about that! I just didn't know how to handle you. You had a hold on me I never experienced before. I didn't want to lose you, I just didn't know anything! I'll break up with him, I'll do whatever. I need you to give me another chance. I'll give anything for another chance…" _Naya forces through the phone, surprisingly clear.

Tears stream down Heather's face. She holds the phone tight against her right ear, clutching to the pillow under her head, left cheek placed firmly against it. The harder her grip becomes on the pillow, the more the tears flow. Her pillow's drenched.

"_Naya, how do you expect me to believe you this time?"_

"_Because it's different! I'm different!"_

"_Yea, and I still don't know if that's a good thing. You broke my heart, Naya."_

"_No… no, I never wanted that. Baby, please understand that."_

Heather cringes.

"_Don't call me that."_

"_I'm sorry…"_

"…"

"_Heather, you have to tell me. You have to tell me if there is ANY chance. You have to give me something, here. I will do anything. I'll dedicate my album to you. I-I- I'll show up to our next scene together butt naked and refuse to put clothes on until you agree to be mine!"_

Heather tries to hold back a giggle, but fails to do so. It gives Naya more confidence to continue.

"_I'll never eat sushi or tacos again! I'll get Lucy to learn the single ladies dance just so you can show her up by doing it better! I will stop working out, so you will forever have a hotter six pack than me! I'll tell Brittana fans to never bother you again! They might shoot me, Heather – do you yet understand the extent of my devotion to this?"_

Heather is outright laughing, because she's probably right about that last part. Naya smiles into her phone. She continues, more serious.

"_Heather, I love you. I've always loved you. I always will. Letting you go was the biggest mistake of my life. The only thing I wanted tonight when I got home, was to celebrate with you and it killed me that you weren't here. It kills me that I've caused this. Do you know how hard it is to look into your eyes on set and act out a scene in which Santana and Britt are in love and not break into tears knowing that I can't act that out in real life?"_

"…_Yea, I do know."_

"… _of course, I'm sorry I didn't—"_

"_It's okay."_

"_HeMo… what can I do? Please, anything – I'll do it."_

There's a long pause and Naya begins gritting her teeth with anxiety.

"_God, you're such a stubborn ass… you do know you'll have to make me trust you again."_

Naya sits straight up in bed.

"_Does that mean I have a chance?"_

"_That means you have a hell of a lot of work ahead of you, and I can't guarantee you anything."_

"_I- Heather! This, you don't understand – this means the world to me."_

"_Don't get overexcited. I have a boyfriend. Right now, that's cemented."_

"_Okay.. I know, I get that… but I mean—so what does that mean?"_

"_It means… I'm not married yet, Rivera."_

"_I—"_

"_Goodnight, Naya."_

The line goes dead. Naya pulls the phone away from her face and lies back down on her bed. Her head hits the pillow. She smiles. She turns to place her phone back on her nightstand. She picks up the picture frame she was looking at earlier. The top says _Family. _But it's the word encrypted across the bottom that holds her attention.

_Faith._


	2. Chapter 2

SURPRISE! Mult-chapter fic, it is. After "The Break-Up" and your super sweet reviews, I've decided this could definitely be a fic I would enjoy continuing. I'm a very busy grad student though, so I can't promise quick updates as much as I'd love to. However, I can tell you that I have A LOT of ideas with where this story is going, and I will not put this one to rest until it's finished. So follow if you're interested!

Also, just a note: I really like writing Naya as kind of quirky and Heather as more serious because I feel like in all the Brittana fics, it's always the other way around. With HeYa, I get to change it up a bit. =)

WARNING: RPF.

All mistakes are mine. i know i can get comma happy, so sorry. Yikes.

Italics are flashbacks or thoughts. Trust me, you'll know.

* * *

'Nobody said it was easy… no one ever said it would be so hard. I'm going back to the start…'

"_CUT! Alright good job, guys. Naya, Heather – choir room scene in an hour. Take 15 then head to makeup and wardrobe."_

_Heather walks off set quickly. Naya notices and follows behind, hurried footsteps to keep up with those long, lean legs she seems to always be chasing after. _

"_Heather! Where you going?"_

_Heather – close to her trailer now – shrugs and roughly grabs the door handle._

"_HeMo, what's the rush?" Naya says as she quickly shoves the trailer door shut and grabs hold of the handle, covering Heather's hand and halting her movements; stopping any form of entry for the blonde, she presses her entire back against the door._

"_Naya, what are you doing? Get out of my way," Heather says as she tries to maneuver around the shorter girl. Naya shifts every which way to avoid that happening._

"_No, what are YOU doing?"_

"_Umm I was trying to get into my trailer, before I was rudely trailer-blocked by my cast mate."_

"_Trailer-blocked? Is that like cock-blocked involving some strange trailer fetish? OH MY GOD HEMO WHAT WERE YOU GOING TO DO IN THERE?" Naya says with a look of faux shock on her face._

_Heather rolls her eyes and starts tapping her foot, frustrated._

"_Seriously, Naya? Take it however you want it, just let me in."_

_Naya smirks._

"_Waaanky."_

"_Good god, move."_

"_No!"_

"_MOVE!"_

"_NO! We always hang out before these scenes. Remember? Back during season 2? That 'Sexy' scene? WE PLAYED WOULD YOU RATHER FOR AN HOUR BEFORE THAT SCENE! And I ended up eating like twelve tootsie rolls to prove to you I'd rather destroy my perfectly sculpted teeth than put that piece of paper anywhere near my eye…" Naya shivers, "Paper cuts! TERRIFYING!" she pauses for a second, "you know what… I don't think we played that game right."_

_Naya's face scrunches up in confusion as she stares at the ground lost in thought. Heather giggles. _So cute, _she thinks. It brings Naya back to the present and she slowly lifts her eyes to blue ones and grins._

"_I convinced you that you actually had to do one of the 'would you rather' options just because I wanted to watch you squirm with that one," Heather admits, following with a tight-lipped smile._

"_HEMO! OH MY GOD! Did you know I got my first cavity EVER after that? You owe me for that dental bill."_

"_Naya, you've never had a cavity in your life, shut up." Heather replies with a breathy laugh – more amused than anything._

"_Okay, but I COULD have gotten one. And that would've been all your fault. Could you imagine me having to sit in that dentist chair… under that unnecessarily bright light? I'd be in tears screaming 'DAMN YOU, HEATHER MORRIS!' It would've been the end of my pure smile. I would have to wear a sign that says 'This smile is fake. It has been filled; filled with fillings and lies. Send hate fanmail to Heather E. Morris to find out more information.' The fans, Heather! THE FANS!"_

"… _Did you know that you can get paper cuts from dental dams?"_

_Naya freezes; her face drops._

"_No… noooooo, why would you say that?"_

"_It's true, like all over your mouth and the sides of your lips. It takes forever to heal too," Heather rambles as she waves her left hand (the one free from Naya's hold on the door handle) dramatically in front of her mouth._

_Naya lifts both of her hands to her ears and starts shaking her head back and forth._

"_HEMO, NO! STOP! WHY WOULD YOU GO THERE?"_

_The blonde smirks at the loss of contact on her hand. She quickly turns the handle and jolts the door back throwing Naya into her. Naya looks up, bewildered. She realizes what's going on as Heather shoves her to the left and rushes inside her trailer. Before Heather can close the door, Naya slips her foot in so it slams right on her ankle._

"_HOLY MOTHER OF COLDPLAY!" Naya screams out. Heather swings the door back open and looks down._

"_Oh my god! I'm so sorry, Nay! I didn't mean to. Come in, let's get you some ice."_

_Naya limps inside the trailer and shuts the door behind her._

"_Jesus, Heather. I don't think you're literally supposed to break my leg. If you wanted to wish me good luck on this next scene, you could've just said it."_

_Heather just shakes her head as she walks over to the small freezer atop the mini fridge in the corner of her trailer. She pulls a Ziploc bag out of one of the cabinets to the side of the fridge before filling it with ice. She walks over to the couch and sits down, tapping the space next to her._

"_Here, come take a seat."_

_Naya wobbles over and sits down. She looks over to Heather, like she doesn't know what she's supposed to do._

"_Give me your leg, you goof," Heather says motioning for Naya's left ankle._

_Naya lifts her leg up and Heather takes it from there, laying it across her thighs. She examines it a bit before applying the ice._

"_It doesn't look bad. Maybe you'll have a bruise later at most."_

_Naya just stares at her intently. Heather laughs nervously._

"_What?"_

"_Why were you running away from set?"_

_Heather's small smile falls from her face and she looks down at Naya's ankle to avoid eye contact._

"_What? I wasn't running away, I just had something I needed to do."_

"_What did you need to do?"_

"_I was supposed to… uh – call Taylor," Heather says as she lifts her left hand to pick at her eyelashes._

"_You're lying."_

_Heather's eyebrows furrow and she shakes her head._

"_No I'm not."_

"_Yes you are. When someone says something that makes you uncomfortable you play with your eyelashes. Usually you respond with a lie."_

"_Usually doesn't mean always."_

"_Well, usually means now."_

_There's a brief silence that settles in as Heather continues dabbing at Naya's ankle. Naya's hand lifts to cover Heather's and to pause the blonde's movements. She dips her head to meet Heather's eyes. Heather gives in and their eyes lock._

"_HeMo, just tell me," Naya says surprisingly soft._

_Heather darts her eyes away again and sighs._

"_I just… I needed a break."_

"_From work and stuff?"_

"_From you."_

"…_oh."_

"_Yea…"_

_An uncomfortable stillness lingers for a few seconds before Heather speaks again._

"_I knew you'd want to hang out before this upcoming scene, but I just needed to breathe for a second, ya know? This scene… it's not going to be… I don't know if I can… like before."_

_Naya removes her leg from Heather and stands up hastily._

"_Well um… I'll just go then." She starts walking to the door._

"_Naya, wait," Heather says as she stands up as well, but Naya turns around before she can walk any closer to the girl._

"_No, I know okay? I get it. I just… I thought it'd be easier to do this together."_

_Heather looks to Naya with what seems to be a mix of confusion and condescension._

"_How on EARTH would that be easier?"_

"_I…" Naya scratches at the back of her neck before she continues, "…well, being around you makes everything easier."_

_Heather sighs._

"_That's not how it works for me."_

"_I know. And I'm sorry, I shouldn't have followed you. It was selfish."_

"_It's okay, I just… ugh now I don't have any time and if I walk in there right now I just don't know if I –"_

"_I'll tell them to push it back. If Snix comes out to play, they'll do whatever I want," Naya says with a joking smile._

"_You mean, they'll do whatever Matt wants."_

_Naya loses her smile quickly, the corners of her lips pinching into a frown. Heather's eyes drop to her feet, feeling bad enough to avoid Naya's eyes but not bad enough to actually feel guilty about the little bit of pleasure she got from the jab she just made. The tension in the air is thick and they both know that while the comment was unnecessary, it was probably well-deserved._

"_Um… well, I'll tell them to do some rearranging. I'm sure they can do that Finn and Rachel scene first because you know Lea's always ready to take the stage. I'll just say you're feeling a little under the weather and need some alone time. No one will bother you…"_

_Heather cringes at the last sentence knowing what Naya really meant was _I won't bother you. _As much as she wishes the brunette could stay, she knows that right now that's not an option for her if she wants to get through this next scene._

"_Thanks, just text me and let me know what they say then?"_

"_Yea, of course."_

_They stare at each other for a few seconds, before Heather once again breaks the silence._

"_I guess I'll see you later then."_

_Naya blinks and shakes her head before responding._

"_Right, yea. Bye."_

"…_bye, Naya," Heather giggles at the girl who seems to be rooted to her spot._

"_Oh! I'm going! I'm going!" Naya jumps and rushes out of the trailer._

_Heather continues to laugh lightly as she falls back on the couch. She stares up at the ceiling of her trailer. She pulls her iPhone out of her purse next to the couch. She grabs the headphones that were in there as well. Slipping the earbuds in, she clicks to the song she's been playing on repeat for days._

'You were in college working part time waiting tables…'

_Heather closes her eyes and begins to think of how Brittany would feel in this situation, yet all that can come to her mind is how she feels, right now. It doesn't take long for tears to start finding their way out of tightly shut eyelids._

It'd be so much easier if I could hate her, _she thinks._

* * *

Naya walks out of her usual coffee shop, two lattes in hand. She hasn't had a sip yet, but she's already feeling jittery. She could barely sleep last night after her conversation with Heather. Today's the day. _The day our love will begin again… _Naya looks down to the lattes, and then to the café she just walked out of. _Taylor Swift, damn you._

She hops into the front seat of her car and drives to set to do some finishing touches on 'The Break Up.' She hadn't been there in a while, because they were shooting back and forth between that and the 'Makeover' episode. She can't wipe the smile off her face as she walks up to the trailer that could easily have been hers considering the amount of time she's spent in it over the years. She looks down to the drinks in her hands and back up to the trailer door she's now in front of. She's not sure how she's supposed to knock without a free hand so with a shrug she lifts her left foot and begins kicking at the trailer door, a little harder than she means to.

The door flies open to reveal a very tired-looking Heather. Hair up in a messy ponytail and bags under her eyes, she squints as the light invades her trailer. Naya starts laughing.

"What are you doing in there, HeMo?"

"Umm I was trying to catch a few more minutes of sleep in my trailer, before I was rudely trailer-knocked by my cast mate."

Naya grins widely, immediately getting the reference.

"As long as you weren't getting cock-knocked in there."

"Ugh, Naya you're so gross. And one of those better be for me."

"Of course," Naya says with a smile as she hands the cup in her right hand over to the blonde, "I figured you might need a caffeine kick since you don't run well on just a few hours of sleep."

"Who says?"

Naya just looks at her, grinning.

"Come on HeMo, you're like a baby. If you don't get 8 hours of sleep you're cranky and whiny all day. Unless, of course, you get your favorite morning drink delivered by yours truly!"

Heather just stares at her blankly.

"Uhh… okay. Please don't take that the wrong way. I mean, I find your zombie morning self to be utterly adorable and there's no one else I'd rather bring coffee to in the morning even if I risk losing a hand in the process."

Heather bursts out laughing.

"Wow, Naya. You're so charming."

"What can I say? I'm feeling a bit light on my feet this morning!" Naya says as she lifts herself up on her toes before bringing her feet back flat on the ground.

Heather smiles and looks to the ground.

"Mmm I can't imagine why."

There's a calm silence. It's not awkward; more reflective than anything.

"I'm doing it, you know?"

"Hmm?" Heather hums as she lifts her eyes to meet Naya's bug-eyed sunglasses.

"I'm going to break up with him," she says in a whisper.

"…Oh."

Naya's brows furrow behind her sunglasses.

"I thought you'd be happy?"

Heather shifts from one leg to the other.

"I… it's not my place to… BE anything. Whatever you do with him, that's your business."

"But that's what you want isn't it?"

"Naya, I told you I can't promise you anything remember?"

"Well, yea but… I don't understand."

"Look, if you think it's time for you two to part, then do so. But, I'm not… it won't change the past. I still have a boyfriend and I still don't know if I can trust you."

"I know that, HeMo. And it kills me. But this has got to be a start, right?"

"Naya, just don't let what you're expecting of me weigh in too heavily on this decision."

Naya takes a step forward and pulls Heather's free hand into hers.

"Heather, I'm not expecting anything of you. I know I've messed up, but this is me trying to make the best of the situation I've gotten us into. Whether we end up together or not, I can't be with someone when I know my heart lies elsewhere."

Heather nods her head and drops her hand from Naya's, taking a step back. Naya can't help but feel a little disappointed at the loss of contact.

"Okay, well I'm going to try to sleep for a little while longer before we have to be on set."

Naya smiles and nods.

"Alright, see you later HeMosexual." Heather cringes at the nickname; Naya found it hilarious that some fans made it up as a term for being Heather Morris-Sexual and transformed it into a nickname for Heather whenever she's grouchy just to piss her off just that little bit more.

"I hate you."

"Don't say that."

"… Sorry, I didn't—"

"I know, but please don't. The last time I heard those words come out of your mouth, I thought my heart had exploded inside my chest."

"I… yea, okay."

Naya smiles and scrambles down the stairs of Heather's trailer. She turns around and starts walking backwards.

"Today's the day!" She shouts.

Heather looks confused, but Naya smirks and gestures to Heather's cup before turning around and walking off.

Heather looks down at her cup and sees small letters in Naya's handwriting across the sleeve of her latte.

_But on a Wednesday in a café, I watched it begin again…_

Heather looks at her phone to check the date.

"IT'S SATURDAY!" she shouts to Naya in the distance. Naya lifts her finger in the air and makes a circular motion without ever stopping or turning around.

Heather looks once again at her cup. She hesitantly turns the sleeve around.

_With you, every day is Wednesday._

Heather grins widely and shakes her head. _Taylor Swift, damn you._


End file.
